No images of Olicity for the episode, but here’s two of my favourite photos. Roy being trained by the Hood. The first time we’ll see Oliver training in his green leather.
Oliver Queen
Arrow: ‘Blast Radius’ (2×10) — My Review
I wrote a review of Blast Radius, which you can find here:
http://www.geekedoutnation.com/tv-reviews/arrow-blast-radius-2×10-review/
And since it was crammed full of good Olicity moments, here’s a pic spam of them through the episode.
Stephen Amell: On-Set 2×15 Island
Amell has been shooting island scenes with Caity Lotz (Black Canary/Sara Lance). Lotz has been posting photos on Instagram today, as well as Amell posting other photos and even a video featuring Lotz.
Seems like episode 15, The Promise, is not only a ‘revelation’ episode but the island flashbacks are tough going. Over the last few days, Amell’s been very active on his Facebook page — posting photos and even taking time out during filming to answer fan questions.
And lets not forget this:
When The Sun Goes Down
When The Sun Goes Down by LandJrule
Words: 11, 097 (2nd longest Olicity fic I’ve ever written)
Pairing: Oliver/Felicity
Characters: The usual — Oliver, Felicity, Diggle. Team Arrow! 🙂
Season/Episode: Sometime around Season 2 Episode 12, Tremors
Synopsis: Team Arrow are working on a case about a bomb in the Glades. But the case has an unexpected twist — one that will change Oliver and Felicity’s friendship.
Rating: M (SEX SCENE AT THE END! There’s your warning people! Turn away now if you don’t want to see it!)
Author’s Note: Okay, so this was inspired by a little tease Stephen Amell made in his 400K Q&A Part 1 video (search his Facebook for it if you haven’t seen it). He was asked what his favourite scene is, and part of his response was “It takes place in ep. 12, after a gigantic explosion.” (I bet you all the die-hard fans started thinking about what the scene actually has in it.) And after talking with @CammienRay & @OlicityLovers (who I dedicate the whole story to!) on Twitter about it, this fic came to life. Most of you will remember that I posted a TEASER of this a while ago. Well, this is FINALLY the full version! Thanks for waiting! 🙂
AN 2: I also wanted to thank Kate Gregorash (Twitter– @klgregorash) who kindly proofread the entire thing! She’s my ‘fine tuner’ that I love to bits! I’m so grateful for everything she does for me, & I look forward to her fine tuning every Olicity fic I do in the future! 🙂 mwah Kate! And thanks to Jasmine (aka pizneyland on Tumblr) for the beautiful manip photo of Olicity that features on the left of the cover art! When I posted the fic earlier in the week, I’d completely forgotten to thank her! Her work inspired the end of this fic, & I’m very glad & grateful she let me use her work in my cover art! So thanks Jasmine!
Enjoy, and please comment!
THIS IS A ONE-SHOT FIC! But Kate did tell me that she got to the end & went “BAH! I hope this is just going to be chapter one or something!” So, I’ve been thinking… If I get enough interest off people from reading this, I will turn it into Chapter 1. So comment away! Have decided to make it a Chapter 1! Stay tuned for Chapter 2! Am planning on putting the chapters on a different site, so I can have the chapters all together (can’t do that here — not the way I want to anyway). I’ll post on here to let you all know when I have done that.
Disclaimer: just the usual I don’t own it stuff.
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She frantically works on disabling it and I anxiously pace as I keep an eye out for anyone who may want to stop us.
“Felicity.”
“I… I… hang on,” she replies.
There’s a click and she exclaims a triumphant ‘Ah-HUH!’ – I smirk, knowing she’s doing that cute fist pump she always does. But then she groans, before muttering, “Oh, come on!”
I spin to look at her, instantly seeing her brow furrowed. I look at the timer – five minutes. If we don’t get this disabled…
“Talk to me, Felicity.”
“Uh… I… I don’t know! I’ve tried everything to stop it, but… I can’t get it to stop. Either I’m cutting the wrong wires, or this is one hell of a complex bomb.”
“Hey,” I whisper, crouching beside her as I place a hand on her shoulder. “Stay calm. I trust that you can stop this.”
She looks at me and practically whispers., “What if I can’t?”
I squeeze her shoulder. “Leave it to me.”
She meekly smiles, eyes full of worry. She turns her attention back to the wires and screen on the bomb in front of her. Two and a half minutes to go.
She sighs. “There’s only one option left.”
“Do it.”
She looks at me. “Be ready to get us out of here quickly. This might not work.”
“I’m always ready. Just do it.”
She gulps as she turns back to the bomb. She then reaches into the space where she’s been working, grabs fistfuls of wires, and…
… Yanks them all out.
The timer stops – 1 minute, 30 seconds left. We smile, both looking to the other as we laugh in relief.
Then it beeps and we both whip our heads towards it. It’s counting down again. Faster.
“Crap,” she mutters.
I grab her arm and pull her to her feet – she yelps, grabbing her tablet. I keep a hold on her arm as we run towards the windows. I hook my arm around her waist, pulling her against me. I spin us, shielding her as best I can as we smash through one of the windows.
We’re barely through when the bomb explodes.
****
24 Hours Earlier
Sometimes I wish I could sneak back out whenever I walk into the foundry while he’s training. He’s so captivating – shirtless to show off his incredibly well-toned body, sweat glistening in the light that just screams for me to stare at his gorgeous yet damaged from those five years of hell on Lian Yu (“where nothing good happened!”) skin. Just the sight of him like that – muscles working almost effortlessly as he moves about – sparks heat in my belly, the longing all too much to handle. That’s why I wish I could sneak out. But lately it feels as if he hears far too well, for he usually stops and looks at me before I can turn back around and leave.
Today, though, he takes me by surprise when he continues to hit his wing chun dummy (I’ve tried hard lately to learn the proper names for his training apparatuses), with his back to me, and says, “Felicity.”
“Uh…” I gape. “Oliver.”
He continues sparring, the noise of his eskrima sticks hitting the dummy echoing through the space, as I settle at my desk. I turn my computer on and wait for it to boot up, eyes focused on the screens as I try extremely hard not to stare at him. Then he grunts loudly and I look up just in time to see him snap one of his sticks in half. He drops it and I see the other one already broken on the floor. He turns around, crosses to me, and for a moment I’m too lost staring at his abs. It’s not until he waves his hand in front of my eyes that I even register he’s talking to me.
“Huh?” I look up and into those stunningly beautiful blue eyes.
He frowns. “You okay?”
“Fine,” I reply. “Dandy.”
His eyes narrow, doubt written all over his face, and so I smile at him. No way in hell I’m telling you I was perving on you.
“How’s the search going?”
I turn my focus back to my computers. “Considering I’ve been here mere minutes, the same as it was last night.” No success yet.
I resume the search on my computer.
“How’s the kid?”
I frown, turning to look at him. “Kid?”
His eyes shift to the roof and he sighs, “Allen.”
“Fine. His boss has him working long hours,” I reply, turning my focus back to my computer. “Barry thinks it’s his punishment for faking being sick so he could come here.”
“Serves him right,” he mutters.
I spin to my right, to face him, and glare. “Had he not lied and come here, then you’d be dead right now. Think about that the next time you’re about to have a go at him.”
I see the hurt in his eyes, the wounded pride from my remark. I won’t apologize though. I’ve held back a lot of comments about his girlfriends and exes – all the women he’s slept with over the last year – but I won’t tolerate him being mean about someone as kind as Barry. He has to learn that if we can’t judge his romantic choices, he can’t judge ours.
“Where’s Dig?”
“You gave him the night off, remember?” I reply. “He’s with Lyla. Not that it’s really any of your business.”
He lets out a shaky breath. “Have I done something wrong?”
“Why do you ask?”
“Because you’ve been rather snarky with me tonight.”
“Perhaps it’s you asking me stupid questions.”
Bracketing both arms on the armrests, he leans in to trap me there – using his large frame to intimidate me
as his face lingers just a little closer than it should. I look at him, keeping a straight face as I hide the fact that my heart’s in overdrive right now. I can’t let him see what this does to me. He won’t stop doing it if I do.
“I just wanted an update on how your search for what we need is going.”
“You should’ve waited a while longer to ask. Give me the chance to work on it for a while.”
“And when I asked about… him?”
I narrow my eyes at the tone – the bitterness – as he said ‘him’. “I really don’t get why you’re so judgmental when it comes to Barry.”
“He did nothing but lie to us from the start.”
I raise my eyebrow. “So did you. A laptop peppered with bullet holes from spilling coffee on it, a fake treasure hunt, using a syringe to hold a sports drink because you had ‘run out of sports bottles’… need I continue?” I reply. “At least his lies were more believable than yours.”
He clenches his jaw. “That was different.”
“How?”
“Felicity.”
“What? Just because he isn’t a millionaire that was ship wrecked on an island? Or maybe it’s the fact that I finally found a friend that isn’t you or Dig.”
“No, that’s not—”
“Then what? I told him your secret because you needed saving. It was either that or expose your identity to the entire city. So I really can’t see why you’re being so snarky about the man that helped us save you.”
He clenches his jaw, and for a moment I forget I’m angry at him because my lord he’s so sexy right now, and close enough for me to grab him and kiss.
“I never really liked that Allen kid.”
“No, really?” I sarcastically reply.
I catch in the corner of my eye the flashing on my computer screen, so I turn to see what’s happening. He looks too.
“Bingo. We have a hit.”
“Where?”
“There,” I say, pointing to the information on the screen.
He huffs. “That’s not what I meant, Felicity.”
“I know. I just…” I look at him and smile cheekily, “…couldn’t help myself.”
He tries to hide his smile, but I see it before he can. There’s a slightly awkward moment where I reach around his right arm to get at my keyboard – which ends when he straightens up, allowing me to swivel my chair to once more face my computers.
“Seems like there’s an abandoned building that’s been used as a delivery address for Ammonium Nitrate,” I reply, reading through the information. “It’s a rather large amount, too.”
“Remind me what that’s used for again?”
“Other than being a high content in most fertilizers, it’s used in bombs, which is what we’re interested in it for. When mixed with many different chemicals, it can create a highly explosive mixture. Done in a large quantity, you could level a wide area of Starling – maybe even level it entirely.”
“Where’s the building?”
I scan the information. “The Glades. Why is it always the Glades that are targeted by these sorts of things? Surely if you can afford to build a device big enough to level it, you’d go for where the rich people are…” I realize what I’ve just said. “Not that I’m saying I’d be happy if someone did, because that would mean your family would be caught up in it… 3… 2… 1.”
He places a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “The Glades have always been Starling’s weakness. The area that could be crippled the greatest by these sorts of situations.”
“Also the area with the highest rate of crime in the city.”
He nods. “Exactly why people like whoever is behind this choose to attack it. Almost all who live in the Glades have nowhere else to live. They’re the most vulnerable. This is why we need to ensure that they’re safe.”
I smile. “Good thing that they have the Arrow protecting them.”
A small smile flashes across his lips. “They also have the Arrow’s Girl Wednesday—”
“It’s Girl Friday,” I correct him. “I don’t know how many times I have to correct you on that.”
“What if I’m making my own version of it?”
I raise an eyebrow, not completely sure what he means, but I don’t press him any further. “You forgot Diggle.”
He smiles, holding back his laughter. “Wasn’t given a chance. You pounced on the Girl Wednesday.”
I tilt my head, lips pressed together as I look up into his eyes. His lips curl upwards in the corners, a playful smile appearing as he chuckles.
“I’m going to go check this building out,” he says as he turns away and crosses to his green suit in its glass case.
“I’ll send the address to your cell,” I reply, turning back to my computers.
****
I walk down the stairs, bow in one hand as I push back my hood. She’s still here, fingers flying over the keys.
“Felicity.”
She jumps, startled by the noise, and then looks over her shoulder to me. “Oliver.”
“I wasn’t… expecting you to be here.”
“I now work as your E.A – which, by the way, I’m still not okay with – but at least it means I can afford to stay here longer.”
I let go of my bow, safely on its stand, and turn to her. I cross to her as I say, “That’s one of the reasons why I made you my E.A.” I stop beside her, keeping the real reason for her change of title to myself – the one I will never ever tell her – I did it to be closer to her. I want to be able to see her all the time, without having to come up with a reason why. “There was enough of that Ammonium Nitrate stuff there to build either one gigantic bomb… or several smaller ones.”
“Stored in the one spot?”
“Yes,” I reply, not understanding why she’s concerned about it.
“Stored incorrectly or exposed to heat or any ignition source can trigger it into violent combustion. It could very easy level the whole building,” she says. “And most likely, given how much of it is there, it would level the neighborhood.”
“All the more reason to stop this now.”
She tilts her head, lips pressed together. Every time she does it, it reminds me of when we first met – when she wasn’t buying my terrible lie. In this case, though, it’s her way of telling me not to point out the obvious.
“What’s our next move?”
She sighs. “Much as I hate to leave it unfinished, we should go. I’ve been trying to find out more about who made the orders, but…” she sighs, “It’s… they’ve used a fake name. Well, not fake – just… not their real name. They’ve stolen the identity of a deceased person, which is totally committing fraud.”
“Hey,” I place my hand on her shoulder, “We’ll find them.” I wink.
She smiles, but it’s forced. Because there’ll always be the doubt that we’ll fail a mission. I want to reassure her, but I just don’t know how. Usually it’s the other way round – her reassuring me. She always keeps me grounded.
She’s turned off the computer screens and is now collecting her belongings. She faces me when she’s done. “Now, you have a meeting at ten a.m. I’ll see you there.”
I nod. She side-steps, heading for the door. Her mouth opens to say “Goodnight” like she always does as she’s leaving, but I stop her by taking her hand in mine. Her fingers instinctively curl around my hand, holding it back. She looks down at our linked hands, in a slightly surprised way, and then looks up to lock her gaze with mine.
“It’s been a long day. Go get some rest. We’ll look at it all with fresh eyes tomorrow.”
Tears swell in her eyes, and the corners of her lips tug into a smile – a genuine one this time. Before I can stop myself, I’m pulling her closer and wrap my arm around her. Thrown for a moment, there’s a pause before she hugs back; arms holding me as tight as I’m holding her. Neither of us moves for several minutes – I take the opportunity to not only hold her so close, but to also inhale her scent. I burn it into my memory, wanting to remember it forever; to remember it for moments when I’ll need something good to cling to. Months ago she asked if I had any happy stories – I regret never telling her she’s mine.
We pull back, and as we do, I kiss her cheek. Our eyes lock, and I see the burning desire in hers. She nervously licks her bottom lip, causing my eyes to instantly drop to her luscious bright pink lips. Oh, to kiss her right now!
Resisting, I drop my hands from her arms. “Goodnight, Felicity.”
She nods once. “Goodnight, Oliver.”
My breath catches in my throat when she runs her hand over my bicep as she steps past me on her way out. I press my lips firmly together, suppressing the urge to grab her, pull her back to me, and kiss her. Tonight’s not the right time to do that.
I stand there, rooted to the spot as I watch her leave. I then change and go home myself.
****
She’s in my dream. Like she has been over the last six months. It’s haunting, yet beautiful at the same time. I dream of us alone – talking, laughing, and her smiling. Then the darkness comes. The torture from the five years where nothing good happened. Just when I think I’m going to be swallowed by that darkness, I reach out into my mind and cling to the memory of her scent. She appears, a soft glow around her, just standing there surrounded by those horrible memories. She smiles at me and slowly, one by one, the dark memories fade; until all that is left is her.
****
“Come on, Oliver,” I mutter, nervously pacing as I wring my hands. He was supposed to be here by now. There’s a conference room full of people waiting to begin this meeting – including Mrs Queen and Ms Rochev.
I cross to my desk and check the time as I grab my cell – it’s 10:40 a.m. The meeting was meant to start at ten! I dial him, put it up to my ear and listen to it ringing. A few rings later, he answers.
“Felicity,” he quips, in his usual, gruff Oliver-the-businessman tone.
“Where the hell are you? You’re meant to be here by now. You are aware that you were meant be here for a meeting forty minutes ago?”
He sighs, and I know he’s running a hand over his face. “I know.”
“That’s not good enough, Oliver. I’ve had Isabel coming out every ten minutes grilling me about where you are. Your mother’s in there, doing her best to keep things under control. I’ve been calling you. What have you been doing all this time?”
“I overslept.”
“Overslept? You’re joking, right? Please tell me you’re joking.”
He sighs. “Wish I could.”
“Okay, so where are you now? I’ll let them know you’re on your way. FYI, Oliver, I haven’t forgiven you for doing this.”
“Wasn’t thinking that one bit,” he mutters.
“I heard that.”
“Good,” he says, voice echoing through the large space.
I look up from my desk to find him walking across from the elevators. He raises an eyebrow at me.
“You’re really infuriating sometimes,” I say, still talking over my cell to him.
I catch the tug in the corner of his mouth, the slight smile. “You like it. Just like you like spending your nights with me.”
Gaping, I look down to hide the blush. Of course he’d remember that!
I hear the click as he hangs up. Then he’s beside me. He slips his hand under my chin and gently pushes my face up, making me look at him. For a moment his blue eyes darken with desire. Just like last night as I was about to leave.
“Thank you for holding down the fort.”
“I’m ordering you ten alarm clocks, and I’m going to plant them throughout your room and you’re not going to be able to find any of them.”
He smirks. “Like to see you try and get in there,” he whispers with a playful look in his eyes that takes my breath away.
“Where there’s a will, there’s a way,” I reply. “I thought you’d know that… being Oliver Queen.”
He raises an eyebrow. He considers responding, but instead just turns and heads for his office. “I better get in there.”
I scurry after him, blocking him at the door. He looks over my head, lips pressed together firmly, and he’s so cute I barely contain the urge to kiss him. “Y-y-you,” I stutter, overwhelmed by my feelings for him. “You should know that Ms Rochev won’t be impressed.”
“I know,” his voice cracks as he says it, making me frown slightly as I wonder what’s going on in his mind. He clears his throat. “You said she was grilling you.”
“Yeah. That’s another thing you owe me for.”
He places his right hand on my left elbow, sending heat shooting up my arm. “And how would she be if I’m even later than I already am?”
I close my eyes, pressing my lips together as I understand what he means. “Yes… right.”
He steps around me, hand still on my elbow, but stops – lingering well inside my personal space. He leans in closer, bringing his lips close to my ear. “Thank you,” he whispers. “And since I still owe you a bottle of wine for helping me decode that military grade encrypted USB all those months ago, go order yourself a couple of bottles of whatever red wine you choose. I’m buying.”
Stunned, I look at him as he leans back. He smirks, giving me a wink. He then shoulders the door open, and I feel him reluctantly withdraw his hand from my elbow; my skin instantly missing his touch. I watch him cross his large office, tugging his jacket slightly as he does it up. Who knew a man in a suit could be as sexy as Oliver Queen is in one?
He walks into the conference room that comes off his office and I glimpse his forced smile. Isabel’s probably giving him a stern word for being almost an hour late. I cross back to my desk, settling in my chair as I grab my tablet and hook it up to the small keyboard accessory. I start looking at expensive red wines.
Maybe there’s still hope today will be good.
****
Oliver and Dig are sparring – the former sans shirt, as per the norm – when I arrive. Oliver had another meeting in the afternoon, one that he had to leave Queen Consolidated to attend. I would’ve gone too; however, he thought it was best I stay behind at the office – practically saying he doesn’t want me there without actually saying it. He hadn’t left without receiving a stern word from Moira in private, no doubt chastising him for his tardiness this morning.
Dig gets the upper hand, pinning Oliver to the ground, before looking at me with a smirk and a nod of hello. I smile back. I then watch as Oliver manages to swap them in one swift move.
“When will you learn that I’m better than you, Diggle?”
“When it’s true.”
Oliver tries hard to not laugh, but ends up losing it – shaking his head as he laughs. Dig tries not to, but before long they’re both laughing.
“Having fun?” I ask, stopping at the edge of the mat.
Oliver turns his head to me. His eyes slowly take me in like he’s checking me out, making me feel uncomfortable (but also causing a spark of heat low in my tummy) under his focus, going up my legs all the way up to finally meet mine. “Training is never fun, Felicity. It’s work.”
“Really?” I raise an eyebrow. “All the times I’ve seen you train – with or without Dig – you’ve always looked like you’re having fun.”
He releases his grip on Dig’s arm, stands and walks over to me. My eyes take in his sweat-covered abs and arms. He stops close to me, once more in my personal space, and whispers, “It’s only fun when I whoop Diggle’s butt.”
I press my lips together to suppress my laugh, fully aware that Diggle’s watching us. Oliver smiles and I can tell he’s laughing quietly.
“Did I miss anything this afternoon?”
I shake my head. “No, it was pretty quiet after you’d gone.” I then remember Isabel’s visit. “Although Ms Rochev dropped by.”
“Oh?” He raises an eyebrow.
“It was curt. Mostly a complaint about you being late, which she’d already done four times this morning, so it was rather pointless.”
“Yes, she gave me some of it the second I walked into the room this morning.” I see the playful smirk he has. “What did you tell her?”
“That I was incredibly busy and if she didn’t have a message she wanted to leave you, she should leave me to do my work.”
He presses his lips together, hiding his grin but given away by the corners of his mouth. He places a hand on my arm, once more sending heat shooting up my arm. “Never stop being remarkable, Felicity.”
“I-I-I’ll do my best not-t-t to,” I reply, thrown by the rush of lust through my body at his touch.
He frowns, clearly noticing my stutter, but he doesn’t ask me about it.
“I did manage to use the time to keep digging into our identity thief,” I reply, once I’ve recovered myself.
He raises his eyebrow. “I should leave you alone there more often.”
My eyes widen. “Not when Ms Rochev is in the building.”
His lips part – a response that, no doubt, is some form of defense for the pretty brunette at the ready – but he pauses and then closes his lips. Good. I hate it when he defends her.
“What did you find out?”
I turn on my tablet’s screen and bring up the information. I rotate it so he can see it. “I got to thinking about the building where we found the Ammonium Nitrate.”
“Mmm-hmm,” he replies, eyes on my tablet. “What about it?”
“It seemed a little off that there was – is – that much of it just sitting in an abandoned building, which was ordered there by someone who’s stolen—”
“I know, Felicity.”
“Yes, sorry,” I reply, pushing my glasses further up my nose. “The closest farm is a long way from the building. Like… as far away from it as you can get and still consider the farm part of our city. So it makes no sense to have that much Ammonium Nitrate sitting there.”
He sighs and I see he’s slowly losing patience with me. “We established that it’s for a bomb.”
“No, I said it could be used for a bomb. Last night there was still a chance we were wrong.”
I notice Dig smirk – I’d just put Oliver in his place. Oliver’s eyes are looking up, focusing on something over my head as his lips are pressed together. He takes a moment before he responds, “I’ll go back to my original question – what did you find out?”
“Well, I decided to see what other buildings were either bought or used by our fraudster,” I reply, Oliver’s eyes dropping back to my tablet. “It took a while, because I had to eliminate those used by the real Fred Pickering, but I came up with another building.”
Oliver’s stunning blue eyes snap up to meet mine, capturing my focus. “Another building?”
I nod. “Further into the city than the one you visited last night. The real worry is how close it is to the surrounding buildings and exactly where it is in the Glades.”
Oliver looks at me for a moment. “It could have a bomb in it.”
I nod. “The building’s large enough for the bomb to cause the worst-case scenario I told you of last night.”
He closes his eyes, as Dig crosses over to us and says, “So we go and disable this bomb before they can use it.”
Oliver looks at Dig, glaring slightly at the fact that Dig just stated the obvious. “Would we not?” Dig opens his mouth to respond, but Oliver continues, “I’ll go. You two stay here.” Oliver walks towards his Arrow clothes as he continues, “Felicity, you’ll talk me through how to disable the bomb over the intercom. Just like you did with Lance during the Undertaking.”
“I’m coming with you.”
Oliver spins around mid-step to face me, brow burrowed and nostrils flaring. “What?”
“I-I-I’m coming with you,” I reply, trying to hide the slight fear I have from his reaction.
He walks back to me, every muscle tense. He stands well into my personal space, using his larger frame to try and intimidate me. “No.”
I stand tall, determined to stand my ground. “We need to stop this before it’s too late. To be honest, Oliver, I don’t think that you’re capable of disabling a bomb, even if I’m in your ear giving you instructions.”
“It’s too dangerous,” he replies through gritted teeth.
“Oh? So it’s okay for me to go undercover into an illegal casino to intentionally get caught cheating, be in here while the building falls apart around me during the Undertaking, jump out of a plane and parachute onto one of the most dangerous islands in the world and stand on a landmine, yet not to come with you to disarm a bomb?”
He stares at me and I can see him processing it all in his head – weighing everything I’ve said; weighing his options.
I cross my arms. “If you’re going, I’m going.”
He clenches his jaw and I can tell without looking that he’s got his hands in fists at his side. He then looks over at Dig, who simply shrugs and says, “She’s right.”
Oliver opens his mouth, but stops before any words come out. He sighs as he turns his attention back to me. “Fine.”
He then turns around and walks rather tensely over to his Arrow clothes. I watch him pull his jacket on, pulling my lip between my teeth – I hate it when he’s mad at me.
“Don’t worry,” Dig says, now standing beside me. “He’ll calm down.”
“Before or after I disarm the bomb?” I ask, looking at Dig.
He smirks and pats my arm before walking off. Great, don’t answer me.
****
I put my left arm back, pushing her behind me. I listen carefully to our surroundings, trying to locate the noise I just heard. Still listening, I slowly raise my arm and pull an arrow from my quiver. I hold it in my bow, holding them out in front of me at the ready so if we’re attacked I can shoot right away. Our only line of defense is my bow and arrows – and there’s no way I’m anywhere near being content with that. She shouldn’t have come.
I slowly step forward, listening and alert. I can sense she’s following a few steps behind. We’ve been in here for maybe half an hour, and so far no sign of anyone guarding this bomb. She’d say it’s a good thing – we don’t have to fight anyone – but having no one standing against us means only one thing. The bomb is active.
As we approach a door, I hear the noise once more. I stop and listen – humming. No, electrical humming. Like a computer, only… louder.
“Whoa, do you hear that?” she whispers.
“Stay here.”
She nods, clutching her tablet tighter against her chest. She looks so vulnerable. And scared.
I turn back to the door, step closer, and kick it open. I step through with my bow drawn, ready for anyone inside. The room’s huge – in length and height – no doubt taking up most of this third floor. Windows line the wall to my left. There’s no one here, just like everywhere else. I lower my bow, arrow still loaded, and look around. I want to make sure we really are alone before I bring her in.
I step around a wall that separates the far end of the room from the rest, raising my bow as I do. I lower it as I take in what’s in front of me; the source of the humming.
****
I swallow hard. I don’t like being out here on my own. What if someone turns up and attacks me? What’s taking him so damn long? Surely there’s no one in there…
I jump at the sound of footsteps, eyes darting around for where they’re coming from. He steps into the doorway, bow at his side without an arrow drawn and his hood pushed back so I can see his face. I’m still not used to seeing him with a green mask – an actual mask, not just green paint around his eyes.
“You should come see this,” he says, before stepping back into the room.
I walk towards the door. “Why do I feel scared at that statement?”
“Hey,” he says softly, gently cupping my elbow. “No one else is here. You’re safe.” He thinks it through. “Even if we weren’t alone, you’ve got me here to protect you.” He then winks.
I force a smile. His hand drops from my elbow to my lower back. I suck in a deep breath and he gently guides me across the large room. We step around a wall and I gape as I take in the other side.
A fairly large bomb – almost as tall as I am, and several feet wide. It looks very sophisticated – how I imagine the earthquake machine from the Undertaking looked. Only this is probably much larger.
“Holy… whoa,” I mutter.
“It’s big.”
I look at him. “Big is an understatement. This is… gigantic!” I reply. “I’m sure there are bombs larger than this in existence…”
“Is it as bad as we thought? Could it level the city?”
I press my lips into a thin line, thinking it through, doing the math in my head.
“Felicity!” He says so loud, I realize he must’ve been saying it several times.
“Uh… no,” I reply. “I really don’t think it could level the city. It’ll definitely destroy the building and cause damage to the neighboring buildings, but…” I sigh. “You saw what the Undertaking did to the Glades. Who knows what this could do.”
“Can you disable it?”
“I’ll try.” I cautiously step closer. “Got to find the access panel.”
“Want me to help find it?”
“No.”
“No?” He sounds so hurt by it.
I look at him. “No offense, Oliver, but I’d rather not accidentally cause it to explode when we’re standing right here. Just stand guard and I’ll take a look. I know what to look for.”
He scoffs. “And I don’t?”
“Can you stop having a go at me, please?”
“You’re doing it to me just as much as I am.”
“In defense of yours,” I snap. I sigh. “Sorry. I appreciate you offering to help, but… this is something very delicate. I just want to keep the risk of setting this off to a minimum. One false move and it could explode – like BOOM!” I say the latter so loudly and throw my arms out wide, he raises an eyebrow at me. I draw my arms back into my chest, looking apologetic. “Sorry for that. I’d rather that we don’t accidently kill ourselves doing this. Because that isn’t something I want to experience. Not to mention that Starling would slip back into its old, corrupted ways without the Arrow around.”
The corners of his lips tug up in a small smile and I’m not sure if he’s smiling at my babble or at the compliment I just gave him. Maybe it’s both.
I turn back to the bomb, turn to my left and start circling it as I look for signs of an access panel. I catch him in the corner of my eye, standing still with his bow at his side as he watches me. I’m three-quarters through my loop around it when I see the outline of a large square that stands out from the baby blue of the metal it’s set into. I carefully place my tablet on the ground, before reaching with both hands towards the square. I take a moment to inspect it, looking for a way to open it without triggering the bomb to explode. I run two fingers along the edge of the square, finding an ever-so-slight indentation in the middle of the top side. I slowly push the indentation, shutting my eyes and turning my head away fearing that this could be a trick and I’m setting it off. After a moment of nothing happening, I open one eye and turn back – it’s opened the panel!
“Yes!” I exclaim, pumping my arm. I realize what I’ve done. “Man, I really need to stop doing that.”
“Success?” He asks.
I look at him – he’s stepped closer. I nod. “I got the panel open. That’s just step one.”
“Step two is obviously disarming it,” he says. There’s a long pause before he adds, “Right?”
I tilt my head to the side. “No, I’m going to set it off.”
He shakes his head, barely stopping the laughter. “Now’s not the time for jokes, Felicity.”
“We have to keep this whole life-or-death situation as light-hearted as we can,” I reply, before turning back to the panel. Inside the small control panel – a square space about 15 inches wide, 17 inches deep and 12 inches high – cords weave all over, each different colors. But what’s alarming is there’s a small screen set just into the base an inch from the front. On it is a timer – 00:15:00 (15 minutes) and counting down.
“Oh, no, no, no, nooooo!”
“Felicity?” He’s right beside me now.
“We have fifteen minutes to disarm this, or…”
“Or what?”
I look at him. “We get obliterated, along with probably half the neighborhood.”
His jaw clenches, and he gets that stoic, action-ready look he gets whenever he’s prepping to go and do his Arrow things.
“We’ll get this. I’ll disarm it,” I say, smiling. I turn back to the control panel and mutter, “I hope.”
****
She frantically works on disabling it and I anxiously pace as I keep an eye out for anyone who may want to stop us.
“Felicity.”
“I… I… hang on,” she replies.
There’s a click and she exclaims a triumphant ‘Ah-HUH!’ – I smirk, knowing she’s doing that cute fist pump she always does. But then she groans, before muttering, “Oh, come on!”
I spin to look at her, instantly seeing her brow furrowed. I look at the timer – five minutes. If we don’t get this disabled…
“Talk to me, Felicity.”
“Uh… I… I don’t know! I’ve tried everything to stop it, but… I can’t get it to stop. Either I’m cutting the wrong wires, or this is one hell of a complex bomb.”
“Hey,” I whisper, crouching beside her as I place a hand on her shoulder. “Stay calm. I trust that you can stop this.”
She looks at me and practically whispers., “What if I can’t?”
I squeeze her shoulder. “Leave it to me.”
She meekly smiles, eyes full of worry. She turns her attention back to the wires and screen on the bomb in front of her. Two and a half minutes to go.
She sighs. “There’s only one option left.”
“Do it.”
She looks at me. “Be ready to get us out of here quickly. This might not work.”
“I’m always ready. Just do it.”
She gulps as she turns back to the bomb. She then reaches into the space where she’s been working, grabs fistfuls of wires, and…
…Yanks them all out.
The timer stops – 1 minute, 30 seconds left. We smile, both looking to the other as we laugh in relief.
Then it beeps and we both whip our heads towards it. It’s counting down again. Faster.
“Crap,” she mutters.
I grab her arm and pull her to her feet – she yelps, grabbing her tablet. I keep a hold on her arm as we run towards the windows. I hook my arm around her waist, pulling her against me. I spin us, shielding her as best I can as we smash through one of the windows.
We’re barely through when the bomb explodes.
****
It’s all a blur – from being pulled to my feet, to him holding me tight as he smashes through the window – and for a moment, as we free-fall to the ground all I can hear is the explosion. He hits the dumpster first, groaning as we roll down its lid and drop to the ground; he twists us to land first to take the blow. Lying on his back with me lying on top of him, he lets out another groan.
“You hurt?” He asks.
“No, other than the slight ringing in my ears. You?”
“Same.”
Oliver runs his right hand from the small of my back up my spine to my ponytail. He gently curls some of my hair around his fingers. In a blink, his hand’s on the back of my head tugging me down, and gently brushes his lips against mine. He lets me draw back slightly, our faces inches apart, and we stare into each others’ eyes. The whole world slowly fades away around us; there’s only the two of us now. His stunning blue eyes are illuminated by the flickering flames, and I see them darken with desire. I feel my own desire building – I need him so bad. One little taste isn’t enough. Before I can stop myself, I close the gap – crushing my lips against his. He tilts his head to slant his lips over mine – our kiss hungry and bruising, but neither of us can stop ourselves. I moan against his mouth, pushing my chest further against him as he runs his hands up and down my back. Then he flips us, pinning me to the ground as his kisses turn to little nips on my lower lip, causing me to moan. His right hand slides down my left thigh, only to push my skirt up – his leather glove on my bare skin, driving my senses and desires wild. I run my hands through his short hair, grabbing fistfuls. It just feels so right finally being able to give in to the long burning desire I’ve held for him.
The sound of sirens approaching causes us to break apart, panting for air. For a moment, I struggle to recall where we are, what brought us here. Then everything comes crashing back – our mission, the explosion.
“We… we need to go,” I whisper.
He nods. He looks into my eyes, the burning desire still there. I know he wants to kiss me again, just as much as I do. But the police and fire department will be on the scene within minutes, and we can’t risk them finding us here – can’t risk exposing Oliver’s secret identity. He plants his hands on the ground either side of me, and pushes himself up. Once he’s on his feet, he holds his right hand out to me. I take hold of his wrist, his fingers curling round my petite wrist, and he pulls me swiftly to my feet with such force, I end up pressed against his chest. He leans in, lips parted in anticipation for mine, but the sirens are closer now and he stops himself just in time. He picks his bow up off the ground. When he’s standing straight again, I reach over his shoulders and pull his hood back up. He smiles in thanks, before he leans forward and kisses my forehead.
We sneak away, mindful of the police and firemen that are now here, to his motorbike that we left in an alley near by. We put our helmets on, Oliver storing his bow and quiver in a little compartment on the back that I’d recommended he add to his motorbike, to which I add my tablet. He then climbs on and I awkwardly climb on behind him. I shift as close as I can behind him, wrapping my arms tightly round his waist. He brushes his right hand over the back of my right, before switching on the engine. The bike roars to life under us and within seconds we’re moving – causing me to ‘Eeeeeep!’ in fright at the instant fast speed and tighten my arms around him.
****
I turn a corner, feeling her arms tighten around my waist even more. If this is how tight she holds on when we’re on my motorbike, I wonder what she’d be like in bed. In my bed.
No, don’t go there Oliver. She’s not one of those women you can mistreat. She’s more than that. More than just another beauty to bed. She knows you more than anyone else. She’s the ONLY one you can be yourself with. Someone you really care about.
We’re at the foundry sooner than I recall it taking us to leave. Although I must admit I did go really fast on the ride home…
Her arms slip from around me once I’ve turned off the engine. I pull my helmet off and by the time I climb off my motorbike, she’s already got hers off (it’s sitting on the back of my bike) and is in the back compartment getting my quiver and bow out. She thrusts my bow and quiver into my chest rather firmly and I look at her startled as I take them from her.
“Have I done something wrong, Felicity?”
“How about putting me on that bike?”
“It’s the quickest way to get around. I’m sorry if you don’t like it, but… you did insist on coming.”
She whips to face me, tablet held close to her chest – her movement’s so quick, her cute ponytail swings back and forth. “I insisted because time was of the essence. You should be thanking me concerning we barely had enough time for me to do what I did. So don’t you dare blame me for hating your bike. We could’ve easily taken one of our cars.”
She walks past me, shoving my arm on the way past that doesn’t affect me since I’m stronger and taller than her, but I clench my jaw in response. I shove our helmets into the storage compartment and rush after her. She slips inside the building, slamming the door behind her. I quickly type in the code for the door lock, and rush in.
When I get inside, she’s already at her desk, collecting her handbag and other possessions. I’m actually glad I told Diggle to go home before we left – I don’t want him to see this.
“Felicity!” It comes out as a bark, one I regret but can’t take back.
“What?” She barks back. Huh. So that’s her loud voice…
I cross to her, take hold of her arm as gently as I can and turn her to look at me. “Hey, talk to me.”
“What’s there to talk about?”
“For starters, how you could go from kissing me to holding me tightly to shouting at me.”
“I was holding you tightly because I was freaking out over the fact that we were going really fast on two wheels,” she snaps. “Excuse me for fearing for my life. Do you have any idea how dangerous those things are? Especially when you go at the speed you were tonight!”
“You were safe. I wasn’t… going that fast!”
She scoffs. “Of course you’d say that. I’m sure that’s how fast you go all the time.”
“Hey, where’s this all coming from? This can’t all be because of my bike.”
“I… I… it totally is!” She stamps her foot, and I hold back my laughter – she’s failing at being angry. “Stop it!”
“Stop what?”
“Laughing at me, you… you ungrateful snob!”
I raise my eyebrow. “Is that what you really think of me? Because you’ve never called me that before, and you definitely weren’t in that mind frame earlier tonight.”
“URGH!” She starts to step around me to leave, but I hold her arm tighter.
“We’re not done.”
“Let me go.”
“Not until you tell me what’s really going on in that beautiful head of yours,” I reply. She looks stunned. “My mother always told me, ‘never go to bed with an argument unfinished’. And that’s what we’re going to do.”
“You know you infuriate me when you suddenly show any sense of being smart.”
I smile. “It keeps you on your toes.” She rolls her eyes. “Besides, I had to be smart to survive on Lian Yu.”
Her expression changes to one of sadness following me bringing up Lian Yu. She always gets that look whenever I bring it up. I cup her cheek with my hand.
“Talk to me, Felicity.”
She drops her gaze down, shaking her head.
“Please, Felicity. Talk to me. I want to help.”
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“You just can’t,” she pulls her arm out of my hand, and crosses to the stairs out.
“Fel—”
“Goodnight, Oliver,” she snaps, without looking back to me.
I cross the space between us so quickly she’s only gone up four steps before I reach her. I fall into step beside her. When she won’t stop or look at me, I grab her arm, turn her to me, and then gently push her against the wall. I put my hands on the wall either side of her, blocking her in.
“Let me go, Oliver.”
“Not until you talk to me.”
“I don’t want to.”
“Bad luck, Felicity.”
She sighs, tilting her head and pressing her lips together to form a thin line. I don’t move, just stare at her until she gives in, which doesn’t take long.
She sighs. “I… I don’t know what to say, how to act around you sometimes, Oliver! You’re like a… a blind bull in a china shop sometimes! You’re a loose cannon, one that’s out of control and threatens to explode at any moment… and then you’re this gorgeous, sweet, kind guy who just melts my heart and sweeps me off my feet and makes me feel safe and loved, and…” She sighs. “I… I don’t know which version of you to expect each day. Because you’re just that unpredictable. It’s downright annoying… no… no. Infuriating. And just when I think you could possibly care about someone as geeky as I am, you go and remind me that I’ll never be anything romantically interesting to you by sleeping with Isabel Rochev when we should’ve been out there supporting Dig. Then tonight you kiss me and I really don’t know what the hell to do with you! You can’t just keep treating women like this, Oliver! You can’t keep giving them mixed signals and confuse them, and—”
I claim her lips with mine, tilting my head to give me better access to her soft bright pink lipstick-covered lips. She’s surprised at first, but eagerly kisses me back. I drop my right hand, wrapping it around her waist and pull her closer. She moans, opening her mouth to mine as her arms wrap around my neck. I step forward, pushing her against the wall. She moans so sexually in response to it, I moan back to her. She tastes so damn good. I want to keep kissing her forever. It’s only when I can’t breathe anymore that I pull back. I lean my forehead against hers, as we both pant.
“That a clear enough signal for you?” I huskily whisper.
“O-O-Oliver,” she mutters.
“I’m unpredictable and infuriating towards you because I… I don’t know how I should be with you, Felicity,” I say. Her eyes widen after that last part. “You know me better than anyone else. You’re the only one I know I can truly be myself with.” I swallow hard. “I… I have never felt like this before. I want you so badly… that I want to protect you, to never see you hurt. I get that I’ve hurt you. I always hurt those I love, but I see that it crushes you whenever I do.” I cup her face with my left hand, gently rubbing my thumb back and forth over her cheek bone. “When I saw how hurt you were that I’d slept with Isabel, I wished that I could go back and erase it. Because I never want to see you look as sad as you did standing at my door that night. I live with that guilt every single day and I do everything I can to make sure I never do it again. I can’t make up for what I did that night in Russia, but… I can stop it from happening again.”
“Oliver, I—”
“I see you with that Allen kid, and…” I search for the right words. “There’s a guy who’s not as messed up and damaged as I am, and you could have a happy life with him, and instead of being a good man and friend to you over it, I get all jealous because you—” I sigh. “I want you to be with me. But I can’t have you, because I’m only going to hurt you, and I… you don’t deserve that. But I can’t just switch off my feelings for you, because… they’re so strong. I’ve… I’ve never felt this way. Not for Laurel… or Sara… or Shado… or Helena and McKenna.” I push down my tears as their faces flash through my mind. I close my eyes. “And that’s why it kills me every time you cry. Because I would do anything to stop those tears. The thing I hate the most, though, is how often it’s my actions that hurt you the most.
I…” I sigh. “I don’t deserve you.”
I pull back, completely withdrawing from her and turn to head back into the main part of the foundry. She places her hand on the inside of my elbow, where she always touches me, and I stop. I look into her eyes for the first time since I started to say all of that to her, surprised to see how sad hers look – tears brimming behind her glasses.
“There have been times where I’ve wanted to walk away, to leave this team and never look back,” she says, barely louder than a whisper. “But I care about you and Dig too much to cut you off. We all need each other to get through this. We’re a team, Oliver. When one falls, when one is in need of help… the other two have their back.” She steps closer, and gently squeezes my elbow. She even smiles slightly. “You say you don’t deserve me… but you do, Oliver.” She reaches up with her other hand, and gently places it on my cheek. I close my eyes, turning into it. “You say you’re damaged… I call you a survivor.”
I open my eyes, frowning in confusion. “Felicity?” My voice cracks in the middle of her name.
“You were stranded for five years on a hellish island, where nothing good happened,” she replies. “Most people wouldn’t have survived as long as you did. It takes great strength to do what you did back then… and an even greater one to come home and pick up life like you have here.” She smiles, gently rubbing her thumb on my cheek. “Where you see a damaged man, a see one who’s been through hell and back. I see a hero, Oliver.
I love everything about you. Every hardship you’ve faced. It’s made you the man that stands here with me today. I see the good in you, Oliver. Yes, I was crushed when…” She sighs. “I was crushed in Russia. But I believe that love hurts sometimes. I also believe that, when it comes to love, we all must let it run its own course. We can’t force it. We need to have faith that it will work out in the end.”
I swallow hard, and fight back tears. “Can someone ever love someone as damaged as I am? To love… a beast,” my voice cracks as I say ‘beast’. “Like me?”
She pouts slightly, the way she does when she feels sympathy for me – I haven’t seen her do that since Christmas, when I had to save Roy and was haunted by ghosts.
“You’re not a beast, Oliver. Not from where I stand,” she replies softly. “Besides, you do remember what happens in Beauty and the Beast, right? Because that is all about loving a beast.” She thinks for a moment. “Even if he was a Prince who was enchanted…”
I can’t help but smile at her. “Do you really mean it?”
She tilts her head to the side. “You’re seriously asking the woman who has no brain-to-mouth filter if she really means that you’re not a beast, but someone who can be loved?” She asks, thinks, then quickly adds, “Who is loved?”
I smirk. “I find that incredibly endearing. Your no brain-to-mouth filter.”
She smiles, turning her head to hide her blush.
I turn to completely face her, leaning in so we’re an inch apart. I drop my head slightly, bringing my lips close to her ear. I then whisper, “I love you.”
She turns her head, eyes meeting mine. And in a shaky voice, she says, “W-w-what?”
“I love you, Felicity,” I reply in my normal tone.
“Really?”
“Shh,” I whisper, holding her chin between my thumb and finger. “No more talking.”
I brush my lips against hers – and she chases mine as I pull back, her hand clutching the back of my head to keep me within her reach. Her kisses are eager and full of longing. Who knew the brainy, socially awkward I.T girl could be so passionate and fiery as she is right now? I place my hands on her hips, pulling her even closer, and she lets out a contented sigh.
Just as I think we could stand here on the steps and kiss forever, she pulls back. I chase her lips, instantly missing them, but she leans further back as she pushes her hands against my chest. So I whimper, shifting one hand to her back to try and pull her back to me.
“Go get changed,” she says, gesturing with her head towards the main part of the foundry.
“Why, when I can stand here with the woman I love in my arms, her lips pressed against my neck?”
She smiles. “Because tomorrow you won’t want to be seen wearing the Arrow’s outfit in broad daylight.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Oh?” I ask. “And why would I be in that situation?”
She points with one of her right fingers right over my heart, her finger on my leather jacket. With her eyes locked with mine, her voice full of confidence, she says, “You’re coming home with me.”
I smile, one that reaches my eyes. “How very direct that was of you, Felicity.”
“I thought you’d be used to that by now, Oliver Queen.”
I place my right hand on her cheek, watching her for a moment as she closes her eyes. “Several months ago, you asked me if I had any happy stories.”
She opens her eyes, locks them with mine and replies, “Yes, I remember.”
I lean forward, resting my forehead against hers, and then whisper, “You are my happy story.”
I hear her sharp inhale, the small gasp-like sound she makes, at my admission. So I hook one arm around her waist, holding her against me. Her body fits so well against mine – it’s like we were made for each other.
I give her a quick kiss – instantly regretting it, for it makes me want to kiss her for longer – before turning and leaping over the last four steps in one bound. I turn back to her – she’s smiling as she fights back her giggles.
“I shan’t be long.”
She pouts. “Don’t keep a woman waiting too long, Oliver Queen,” she replies. “A woman detests that.”
“Well, then,” I reply, pulling my jacket’s zipper down to expose my bare chest. I smirk as I watch her eyes drop to my chest and she pulls her bottom lip between her teeth. “I better get cracking.”
I turn around, hearing her whimper, and walk off. Tonight isn’t so bad after all. I’m so happy that she insisted on coming with me.
****
I step back into my apartment, pulling him with me as we kiss, tongues rolling around the other. I toss my handbag over my shoulder, not caring where it ends up, and return my hand to its grip on his suit jacket. I break our kiss, and push him back – slightly surprised when it works. I pin him against my closed front door, still holding his jacket, and start kissing his neck. He lets out a low moan, his voice box vibrating against my lips, as he tilts his head back which gives me better access to his neck. I run kisses up to just behind his chin, planting multiple kisses on the one spot. His stubble tickles my lips, but I don’t care. He’s enjoying this – at my mercy, so to say – his right hand running up and down my back, his breathing quick. After a while, his hands cup my face and pull me from his neck. He looks into my eyes and I can’t help but notice how much darker they are from desire.
He’s silent for a moment, most likely trying to catch his breath. He shakes his head. “Damn you, Smoak,” he mutters, before claiming my lips with his.
I tug off his jacket as we kiss, and toss it aside. I start lightly nipping at his bottom lip, causing him to let out a low moan. He pulls back, breaking the kiss, before he bends over slightly, hooks his right arm behind my knees and manages to swiftly scoop me up into his arms – his left arm resting around my back. I wrap my arms around his neck, and I’m tempted to keep kissing him but I know he’s not completely familiar with my apartment’s layout (and I know he’d be distracted if I do) so I hold back. He walks around my couch, and heads straight for my bedroom.
I raise an eyebrow at the fact that he knows which room to head to even though the door’s almost completely shut, thus ruling out him seeing the bed. “How do you—”
“Shhh,” he whispers, nuzzling his face into the side of mine. He then shoulders the door open.
I playfully kiss his neck, he moans and stumbles slightly as he steps into my bedroom. He walks quickly over to my bed, gently laying me down on it. He gets on his hands and knees over me, leaning down to kiss me once more. As we kiss, my hands slide around his neck, over his collar bone and I start unbuttoning his shirt. He runs his right hand down my left thigh, and pushes my skirt up. When it’s all the way up, his hand moves to my underwear and he starts rubbing me gently – I moan into his mouth, and he rubs me more. In the haze of all the desire running through my body, I can feel the wetness dampening the fabric of my undies. I can’t take this anymore. Enough with this torture! I want him in me now!
I place my hands on his arms, his biceps tense from holding himself above me. I manage to push him to my right (unfortunately breaking our kiss), forcing him onto his back and I straddle him. He stares up at me, one eyebrow cocked in amusement.
“Well,” he says, hands holding my hips. “I’m seeing a new side of you, Felicity.”
“You were teasing me too much, Oliver,” I reply. “You have no idea how long I’ve imagined you in this position.” His eyebrow raises more, and I realize exactly what I’ve just said. I cover my face with my hands. “That came out wrong.”
He pulls on my blouse, pulling me down to him and I place my hands on his chest. He stops me when our faces are inches apart. “I’m glad tonight we’re making both our dreams come true.”
I’m surprised, but don’t have much time to dwell on his words – he gently pulls my glasses off, closing the arms over, and stretches over to place them carefully on my bedside table. He then tucks my hair behind my ears, his hands lingering at my face. He then whispers, “You’re so beautiful.”
I smile, leaning closer until are lips are almost touching and whisper, “I love you.”
He tilts his head slightly as he closes the gap, his kiss bruising but I don’t care. We’re together – finally – and that’s all that matters. His hands are in my hair, trapping my head to his. And for the first time I finally feel at home – our bodies just fit together so perfectly, it’s like we were meant to be in each others’ embrace.
We spend the next few minutes stripping off each others’ clothes, swapping who’s on top several times to make it easier to shed our lower clothing.
****
She shimmies out of her undies above me. I push them the rest of the way off with my right foot, before I flip us – she lets out a shocked squeal that rolls into laughter – and claim her lips the second she’s beneath me. I press my body gently against her, wanting to be as close to her as possible – she smells and tastes incredible. Her hands slide up into my short hair, taking hold of it in fists as she moans into my mouth; our tongues clashing. I slide inside her – she gasps, breaking our kiss, and I grunt slightly as her wet inner muscles clench, making it hard for me to penetrate her.
“Relax, baby, relax,” I whisper, gently caressing both her sides. She closes her eyes, her breathing slowly slowing down – and I feel her inner muscles relax. I smile, bringing my lips beside her left ear. I whisper, “at-a-girl, Felicity.”
I then lightly nip her earlobe, causing her to arch her back and moan. Her movement allows me to slide further into her, causing her to dig her nails into my scalp. I kiss her neck as I thrust into her, being gentle at first. But the months of lusting after her and the endless dreams about doing this to her fill the front of my mind, and I increase my pace, causing her to once more moan. I gently suck the skin on her neck, loving how sweet her skin tastes. Not to mention she’ll most likely have a giant hickey come morning.
I thrust over and over and over, sucking on her neck as she moans. After a while, she wraps her legs around my waist – this changes her angle, and I groan as her inner muscles tighten around me. I slide my right hand down and start rubbing and pulling her clit which makes her gasp and squirm. I still her by hooking my other arm around her, pulling her against me as I continue to thrust in and out of her.
Her orgasm hits first, her inner muscles spasming as her climax hits. Mine follows seconds later – my vision blurring and I see colors, something I’ve never experienced before during an orgasm. Perhaps it’s because for the first time, I’m making love to the woman who I know for sure is my soul mate. As we both come down from our orgasms, I gently lower her back down so she’s flat on her back once more. I then relax on top of her, shifting my weight to my left elbow that’s slightly under her so not to squish her. I gently rub my right hand over her left thigh, as we stare into each others’ eyes.
“It… it feels really good having you inside me,” she says.
The last time she said that, all those months ago, comes back to me and I can’t hide my grin. We both chuckle, and then I claim her lips. This has been one unforgettable night.
Olicity Hug Sketch — Complete
Okay, so originally I was going to colour this in. But it’s not working out the way I hoped, so I’ve tidied up the original scan (because the scanner picked up a lot of the erased lines on it) in Photoshop Elements.
It’s tagged as I don’t want people to take it. So PLEASE RESPECT THAT. You can reblog & share it, as long as the tag remains.
Other than that — enjoy! And comment! 🙂
Olicity ‘Three Ghosts’ Art
I got bored, and thought I’d fiddle round with some Three Ghosts screencaps in Photoshop Elements (since I’m currently unable to gain access to Photoshop, but I’ve survived having just PSE for years so I don’t care). And then this ended up happening.
I was planning on putting some text on it, except I don’t know what to put now that it’s done. So any suggestions you have are more than welcome. Even if you think it doesn’t need text.
PLEASE CREDIT ME if you want to use it. Click on it for a larger version.
WordPress is messing with my upload — it doesn’t seem interested in having the bigger version. Since I don’t know why, here’s an alternative link — to my Flickr account: http://www.flickr.com/photos/100644410@N03/11382008326/sizes/l/
Edit: Okay, now it does let you click on it & it loads. Might’ve been just Firefox messing with it — Firefox did just crash on me moments later… so… yeah. Will leave the Flickr link up anyway, as there’s more sizes there.
My Olicity Hug Drawing (W.I.P)
Just thought I’d put this up here. It’s a sketch/drawing I’m doing based off the first screencap I posted yesterday (the cropped down one in case you’re wondering).
This is a work in progress, but I thought I’d share it. And since scanning it, I’ve altered her head — had it right to start with, doubted last night that it was right (thought it was too big) & changed it only to find that I was right all along! D’OH!
I have to admit I cheated a little — stuck the piece of paper to my PC’s screen, using it like a light box & traced the outlines & Oliver’s (Stephen Amell) facial features. That’s why it probably looks so realistic.
There’s still lots to do with it — fix her hand, draw the rest of their bodies, add in his other hand (cos I want him to be holding her with both arms, though I get why it was one arm in the episode since he had his bow). And I’ll probably colour it too — haven’t decided whether to try digitially colouring it or just do it the old fashioned way of pencils.
Feel free to leave comments. 🙂
AND CREDIT ME IF YOU REBLOG IT! I’d really prefer not to watermark it, but I will if I have to!
Olicity Hug sketch — WIP
Olicity Hug from 2×09 ‘Three Ghosts’
So it was a touching moment near the end of one of the biggest, exciting & very ‘OMFG’ episodes of not only Season 2 but probably the entire show.
I thought I’d share these. I didn’t make them (except crop the first one down). I’d credit the site I got them from but I can’t remember it right now.
^ Using that one to draw them
When The Sun Goes Down (New Fic Teaser)
So this is a little teaser (the opening scene) to my latest fic, which is a WIP & When The Sun Goes Down is just the working title — since I usually don’t name my Olicity fics until they’re done.
This was inspired by a little tease Stephen Amell made in his 400K Q&A Part 1 video (search his Facebook for it if you haven’t seen it). He was asked what his favourite scene is, and part of his response was “It takes place in ep. 12, after a gigantic explosion.” (I bet you all the die-hard fans started thinking about what the scene actually has in it.) And after talking with @CammienRay & @OlicityLovers (who I dedicate the whole story to!) on Twitter about it, this fic came to life.
It’s set around the time of Arrow Season 2 Episode 12, ‘Tremors’. Now, since there’s no known information about that episode (except Stephen’s comment), I’ve taken full creative license on the case they’re working on.
The full story will be posted sometime soon. Not gonna promise a date or anything, because I don’t know when I will!
But in the meantime, enjoy this. Comment afterwards — on here, but also on Twitter (I’m @LandJrule).
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She frantically works on disabling it and I anxiously pace as I keep an eye out for anyone who tries to stop us.
“Felicity.”
“I… I… hang on,” she replies.
There’s a click and she exclaims a triumphant ‘Ah-HUH!’ – I smirk, knowing she’s doing that cute fist air pump she always does. But then she groans, before muttering, “Oh, come on!”
I spin to look at her, instantly seeing her brow furrowed in a frown. I look at the timer – five minutes. If we don’t get this disabled…
“Talk to me, Felicity.”
“Uh… I… I don’t know! I’ve tried everything to stop it, but… I can’t get it to stop. Either I’m cutting the wrong wires, or this is one hell of a complicated designed bomb.”
“Hey,” I whisper, couching beside her as I place a hand on her shoulder. “Stay calm. I trust that you can stop this.”
She looks at me, and gulps. “And if I don’t?”
I squeeze her shoulder. “Leave it to me.”
She meekly smiles, eyes full of worry. She turns her attention back to the wires and screen on the bomb in front of her. Two and a half minutes to go.
She sighs. “There’s only one option left.”
“Do it.”
She looks at me. “Be ready to get us out of here quickly. This might not work.”
“I’m always ready. Just do it.”
She gulps as she turns back to the bomb. She then reaches into the space where she’s been working, grabs fist-fulls of wires, and —
Yanks them all out.
The timer stops – 1 minute, 30 seconds left. We smile, both looking to the other as we laugh in relief.
Then it beeps, and we both whip our heads towards it. It’s working again. Faster.
“Crap,” she mutters.
I grab her arm, and pull her to her feet – she yelps, grabbing her tablet. I keep a hold on her arm as we run towards the windows. I hook my arm round her waist, pulling her against me. I spin us, shielding her as best I can as we smash through one of the windows.
We’re barely through when the bomb explodes.
****
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Well, there you go! That’s all for now!
Lost Without You
Lost Without You by LandJrule
Words: 7, 365 words
Published: 28/11/2013 (Australian East Coast Time)
Pairing: Oliver/Felicity
Characters: Oliver, Felicity. And the rest are my own creations.
Season/Episode: Set about 2 years after ‘State Vs Queen’ (2×07), about the show’s Season 4. Remember this — because the small details will make more sense if you do.
Synopsis: Okay, so there’s not really much of a mission in this. Oliver needs to speak with the Bosnian Mafia to get information regarding their mission, and Felicity comes along. Things don’t go so well for them. But every bad event has a silver lining, as Felicity and Oliver find out.
If I could only hold you now and make the pain just go away
Can’t stop the tears from running down my face
All I know is I’m lost without you I’m not gonna lie
How am I going to be strong without you I need you by my side
Rating: M (swearing/coarse language)
Author’s Note: Okay, so this story came to me last week. I’ve been writing my own TV series about a hero, & this storyline comes originally from that — but the more I wrote it for that, the more I kept thinking about Olicity. And so I converted it into an Olicity story — although altering it to suit the Arrow world was much harder than I expected!
I also want to give credit to a song. I even named this fic after it. It’s Lost Without You by Delta Goodrem. If you don’t know it, listen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMYUYtsUGgg
I was trying to come up with a name for this story yesterday, and I had my iPod playing — the song came up, and it inspired me. And I do kinda have a habit of naming my stories after songs, lol.
I also wanted to thank Kate Gregorash (Twitter– @klgregorash) who kindly proofread the entire thing! I’d reached the point where I was so stressed making the original piece fit Olicity that I was making simple errors and was over reading it. Kate read it, and made it much easier to understand. Also she came up with my favourite line in the entire piece — and she says that was pure luck!
Disclaimer: just the usual I don’t own it stuff.
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The drive there is done in silence. He didn’t want me there, claimed it’d be too dangerous for me to be around the Bosnian Mafia (apparently they’re “too brutal” for me, yet are fine for him, pffft). I’d held my ground, though, telling him I’m coming. When he’d continued to argue, I simply said I can handle it. I’ve been learning self-defense moves; I have the skills to defend myself. He eventually caved, making me promise to stay in the car the whole time.
I look up from the information we have on my tablet, to find him gripping the steering wheel tightly. I’ve never seen him so nervous on a mission before. I wonder what’s going on in his mind right now, noting his clenched jaw.
He’s not in his Green Arrow outfit. To get the information we need, Oliver needs to show himself to the Bosnian Mafia. So he’s in his suit, the top couple of buttons on his shirt left undone.
I look back at my tablet as he turns onto a side street. I let out a small sigh – all this information is rather overwhelming. Not to mention sickening – the amount of deaths that have been linked to the Bosnian Mafia, most of which haven’t resulted in any arrests by members. I’m so lost in thought, I don’t even notice us come to a stop until Oliver’s hand touches my left forearm. I look up at him, to find him staring at me. His blue eyes seem to be darker now.
“These men are dangerous,” he says in his very serious voice. The one he gets on missions. “I want you to lock the doors. If anything happens – if they come for you, put your hand on the car horn, and don’t take it off.” He’s giving me his intense stare. “I’ll hear it, and I’ll come right away for you.”
“I can fend them off.”
“NO!” He’s so stern, so loud, I flinch. He slides his hand down my arm, and slips his into mine to hold it reassuringly. “Look, you don’t know the Bosnian Mafia like I do. Before you start about the research, it’s not like that. They’re worse. Far worse. That’s why I didn’t want you coming along, because I—” He looks away, letting out a shaky sigh. I know he’s struggling to keep back tears. He takes a moment to compose himself enough to look at me again. “I’m afraid that something horrible will happen to you, and I might not be able to help you in time. And I can’t… I can’t live with myself if that happens.”
I squeeze his hand, holding back my tears. “You’ll hear me on the comms. If anything happens, I’ll kick them, scream my lungs out, slam my hand on the horn, and not take it off.”
He smiles, but it’s small and forced. “If they do come, and they manage to get you out of the car… hit them and run.”
“Oliver—”
“Run, Felicity.” His voice breaks during my name. “You’re better off running away than staying and trying to fight them.” He reaches over with his other hand, and cups my cheek. “You’re not ready to face them in a fight.” He blinks several times to clear tears. “Not yet,” he whispers.
I close my eyes as I turn into his hand. This could be the last time we work together. I want to remember this moment, to burn it into my mind. So I have one last happy memory to hang on to – in case they get me, or… get him.
I feel him gently rubbing his thumb back and forth over my cheek, his calloused skin feeling rough against mine, yet completely comforting. I let out a contented sigh, pushing more into his hand.
Then I feel it leave and I open my eyes. His eyes aren’t on me – he’s staring out the windscreen, and in this dim light I can see he’s frowning slightly.
“Lock the doors behind me,” he says, back to his serious tone again. He’s building up his composure, his game face. “Remember… don’t fight.”
“Run,” I reply, nodding. I add in a barely above a whisper, “I know.”
He nods once, still not looking at me.
“Hey,” I say, squeezing his hand.
He looks at me, and I see the worry and pain in his eyes. Then I say those five reassuring words, even though we both know they’re probably wrong.
“We’ll see each other again.”
The corners of his lips curl up slightly, and I know it’s not such a forced smile as the previous one. He then draws my hand up to him, and places a light kiss on its back that has me feeling dizzy.
“Stay safe,” he whispers.
I fight back tears, taking a moment to bite my lip. “You, too.”
He squeezes my hand firmly, and for a split second it feels bone crushing. His eyes lock with mine, and I see the pain in them. He really is worried that we’re not going to both survive this. The air vanishes in my lungs just thinking about it, my chest tightening, and my heart shoved up into my throat. This could be the very last time we see each other.
I inhale sharply, the tears really stinging now. I nod. I then choke out, “Good luck.”
He smiles, and it’s so much less forced, as he nods. He then gives my hand another firm squeeze before letting go. He opens the door and steps out. Once it’s shut, I see him linger beside the car until I’ve locked the doors. I watch him walk across in front of our car to the building on my side – doing his suit jacket up and smoothing it out as he does. He stops at a door several meters ahead of our car and knocks. There’s a long pause before the door opens. I hear his voice via our comms, but can’t understand even a single word since it’s Bosnian. Whatever he said works – for he steps behind the door, out of my sight and into the building.
I sigh, and push my glasses up with both hands to wipe away my tears. I hate it when we get this emotional during our missions. I make sure my glasses are sitting correctly and turn my focus back to my tablet. The whole point of me coming was so we could put any information Oliver gets from the Mafia into action immediately. It’s a good plan. Brilliant, actually. Except there’s one problem – yes, I can hear them talking, but understanding what the say? Not a clue. I don’t plan on telling Oliver. He’d be pissed that I’d convinced him to let me come for absolutely no reason.
Despite not understanding what he’s saying, just hearing Oliver’s voice is very comforting. It lets me know he’s here. I smile – my knight in shining armor hard at work.
All of a sudden, my instincts kick in. I get that horrible chill down my spine. I slowly turn my head to my right, and the dread hits my whole body.
Two men are right outside my door, one working to unlock it.
“Ah, crap,” I mutter, just loud enough that I hope Oliver hears it.
I start to shift to the driver’s side, to the horn, but to also put some distance between me and them. Mid-way there, I hear the door open, so I kick with all my might – feeling it collide with one of them, and hearing him groan. I flip to sit down sideways across the seat, my back against the door, and my legs partly on the passenger’s seat. One of the men appears in the doorway and I kick him. He sees it coming, though, and grabs my ankle with both his hands. He starts pulling me, trying to drag me across the seats and out. I swing my other foot towards his head as I twist my upper body to my left and slam my hands down on the car’s horn.
I faintly hear Oliver groan, it getting drowned out by the horn. He knows I’m in trouble. I know he’ll be unable to come and get me – it’s too soon, he’s only just gotten in there. We could lose our chance to get the information if he bails now.
The man’s holding both my ankles now, and is pulling as hard as he can. I leave my left hand on the horn and grip the steering wheel with my right. Maybe I can hold on long enough to give Oliver the chance to come and save me.
Then the force of the pulling increases and I know that both men are pulling me. They manage to pull me slightly closer – the first man’s hands hold one of my knees while the other’s holding my other ankle – and I let out a scream as I lose contact with the horn. I grab the wheel with both hands and use all my strength to pull me closer to it. I’m thankful I’ve been doing pull ups on a regular basis. All I can think right now is to keep holding on – Oliver will come. He has to come.
They’re too strong for me. Within a few minutes, they’re pulling me over, my hands ripped from the wheel. I scream, twisting my body from side to side, trying to free my legs. If they’re going to take me, I’m going down as loudly as I can and with a huge fight. They make me stand – one of them pinning me backwards against the car, his hand close to my throat, while the other shuts the door. They may be rough, but at least they’re considerate.
I kick as I throw a punch, but the latter doesn’t land because I stop, feeling the cold metal of a gun’s barrel press against my left temple. That’s when I know I can’t fight anymore. The arm pinning me to the car drops. I see in the dim light the other man grab my right arm and pull me forward. I squirm as he forces my back flush against his front, his right arm hooked around my waist in order to keep me there. Not that I’d get far if I got away from him; his companion’s still aiming a gun at my head. The man behind me runs his other hand over me, speaking in Bosnian. He gropes my breast and I can’t keep the whimper from escaping me. Both men laugh. It’s a sickening sound.
The man behind me turns around, keeping me against him, and forces me towards the door Oliver entered the building through mere minutes ago. At least they’re taking me in there – hopefully Oliver can save me inside.
There’s minimal lighting in the corridor, giving off a creepier vibe than the two men with me. I let out a relieved sigh as the man lets go of me. The relief only lasts a second, for the gun is pressed against my occipital bone. The man pushes the gun harder against me, forcing me to step forward. As I walk down the corridor, I cross my arms and hold my elbows tightly. I pray that Oliver is where we’re going. Or, if not, he can get to me.
I can still hear Oliver’s voice – and am thankful these brutes haven’t noticed my earpiece. He’s speaking Bosnian, but I don’t have to understand it to know he’s angry. He’s fully aware that I’m in trouble and I know it’s killing him to not be able to help me. Although, it’s a mild anger, like he’s trying to hide it.
I focus on his voice as the men take me down several corridors. When we turn into another corridor, Oliver’s voice echoes down its length from the other end, and I barely hide my sigh of relief. They’re taking me to him!
The same brute who held me before grabs my right upper arm roughly, forcing me to uncross my arms. He then pulls me roughly towards a door, and leads me into a brighter lit room. I squint as my eyes adjust to the sudden change in light. When they have, I see that Oliver’s facing away from me as he talks with another man who no doubt is the leader of this section of the Bosnian Mafia.
The man holding me speaks. Oliver spins around so fast at the sound, I expect him to throw one of his knives I know he’s got hidden. I see the devastation in his eyes as he takes me in. A part of him surely believed I’d escaped. Right now, I wish I had.
My eyes drop from his, and I notice his hands are clenched in fists at his side. His anger is brewing under the surface of his calm exterior. We’re in a living nightmare. I lift my eyes back to him, and both of us nearly cry.
“Ostaviti na miru,” Oliver says.
“Ne,” the man beside me replies, before running his other hand over my abdomen.
I let out a loud whimper and try to get away from him, but he holds my arm tighter, and his companion pushes the gun harder against my head, so there’s nothing I can do except stand still. Oliver starts to take a step towards me, protective instincts kicking in, but stops himself. That’s when I realize he can help me more by talking; showing dominance over the men through speech rather than physicality.
“Ostaviti na miru!” Oliver shouts.
The man to my right pauses, his hand still on my abdomen. The Mafia Boss, the one Oliver had been talking to as I arrived, steps closer to Oliver who turns to face him. The two talk in lowered voices for several minutes in Bosnian. I can only assume Oliver’s explaining whatever lie he’s chosen to be the cover for why I’m here.
The man on my right drops his hand from my abdomen, but keeps his tight grip on my arm as he steps behind me. He holds me once more flush against him. My entire focus is on him, all my senses trained on him, wanting to know what he’s going to do next. He starts feeling me up again, his hand this time sliding under the bottom of my top to run his hand over my skin. A strangled cry escapes me, and Oliver’s eyes instantly snap to me.
He barks something in Bosnian to the man, his voice booming through the large room. The man stops moving his hand over me, but it remains under my shirt. Oliver’s jaw tightens, and I know he’s barely stopping himself from attacking the man.
The man behind me finally withdraws his hand from under my shirt, muttering something. I sigh as Oliver relaxes slightly. We both know I’m not safe yet; not until we’re out of here. Oliver makes eye contact with me, silently asking if I’m okay. I curl the corners of my mouth up in a small smile – I’m okay. For now.
My attention snaps back to the man when he lets go of me completely and steps back to my right. His companion is still to my left with his gun aimed at my head. He gets out a knife and starts ripping holes in my jeans and shirt. I’d kick him if it wasn’t for the fact I have a gun pointed at my head. Instead, I simply shut my eyes and cry. I’ve been trying not to get upset, to show any weakness, but this has gone too far.
“Oliver!” I whimper.
“Ostaviti na miru!” Oliver yells, his voice booming.
It’s no use – the cutting of my clothes continues. Another choked cry escapes me.
Suddenly it all stops – the gun pressure, the tearing of my shirt – and I’m in a heap on the floor. Startled, I open my eyes to find both men lying on the floor on either side of me. Both are completely still, knives sticking out of them.
Oliver’s knives.
Relief sweeps over me – Oliver killed them. I look over to him, expecting him to be crossing to me, or at least looking at me. But he’s talking with the Mafia Boss – both talking fast, angrily, and over one another.
I flinch in fright as Oliver shouts something right in the other man’s face. The latter has been silenced. I stand as Oliver crosses to me.
“Oliver!” I mutter, unable to stop myself from throwing my arms around him and crying into his clothes the second he’s within reach.
He wraps his arms around me and holds me so tightly I can’t breathe. But I really don’t care – he saved me, and I’m safe in his arms.
“Hey…” he whispers. “It’s okay. You’re okay.”
I feel him bury his face into the top of my head and let out a sigh. I could stand here in his embrace for eternity.
The sound of the Mafia Boss’ voice coming from close by causes me to gasp. I open my eyes to see him standing near us, looking very angry; flanked by four very tough-looking men.
I curl my fingers, clutching the back of Oliver’s jacket tightly. I’m so scared. I just want this to be all over and to be safely out of here. This is starting to feel more like a nightmare than reality. Is it all just one horrible nightmare??
I feel Oliver lift his head and I know he’s looking at the other man. Oliver says something rather angrily to the Boss, once more speaking in Bosnian. I never realized until tonight how angry Bosnian can sound when you don’t understand it. Oliver releases me from the hug, and I follow suit, even though I really don’t want to let go of him until we’re out of here. Oliver wraps his arm around my shoulders, pulling me firmly against him so we’re side-by-side, but I’m still under his protection. He’s holding my right shoulder firmer than he normally does, but I don’t care. I’m safe; that’s all that matters right now. He glares at the Mafia Boss for a long moment. He then leads me towards the door, making sure to keep himself between me and the men.
Once we’re out in the corridor, he drops his arm and his hand comes to rest gently on my lower back, as he walks close beside me. We move quickly, both of us wanting to escape this God forsaken hell-hole as soon as possible. I wrap my arms around my middle, feeling so sick and… used. It’s like my dignity’s been ripped completely from me.
Oliver’s hand leaves my back and, before I can wonder why, I feel his jacket gently land over my shoulders. I glance down – he’s draped it over me. I look up to find his eyes on me, and smile my thanks. He smiles back – the first time he’s genuinely smiled tonight.
I slip my arms into his jacket’s sleeves as we turn down the last corridor, before folding one side over the other to close it and cross my arms to keep it shut. I get a whiff of his cologne as I fold it over – it’s a rather comforting smell. We reach the exit and Oliver shoulder shoves the door open and returns his hand to my lower back as I step outside. I catch him looking back down the corridor, checking to see if they’re following, but they’re not. Whatever Oliver’s last words were, they put them off following us.
We cross to our car and he opens my door. He stays by my side until I’m seated and shuts the door for me. I wrap my arms around myself once more, watching him through the windscreen as he walks around the front of our car so quickly he’s almost running. He gets in and has the engine running before his door is shut. He tears off; the tires screeching.
He drives fast until we approach the main road, where there’s more traffic, so he slows down. I watch in the corner of my eye as he glances at me several times.
“You okay?” he asks.
“Do I look okay?”
He sighs. “Point taken.”
I feel guilty for reacting like that to him, especially after he’s just saved me. I guess it’s all just shock. I inhale slowly, hold, and then let it slowly out. “You were right.”
He looks at me, surprised.
“Can you keep your eyes on the road, please?”
He turns his attention back to the road, but I see him clench his jaw in annoyance. This isn’t how this should be going. We shouldn’t be getting mad at each other.
“Right about what?”
“Me not being able to fight them.”
He glances at me, and in that brief moment, I see the sadness in his eyes. “Felicity—”
“They came and unlocked the door, and they… they pulled at me, and I tried so, so hard to stay in the car,” I say, sobbing without tears. “I hit the horn, and I was holding onto the steering wheel, but they… they kept pulling and pulling, and…” I let out a shaky sigh. “They were too strong… they pulled me out. I tried to fight them, but they had the gun, and I—”
The tears begin to fall and my instincts kick in – I close my eyes as I lift my hands up to push my glasses up so I can cover my eyes. I stop when I feel Oliver link his hand with mine. I stare at our linked hands, my lip trembling, and he squeezes it reassuringly.
“You did the best that you could, Felicity.”
“They caught me.”
“Did you see the black eye one of those creeps had? You did that, Felicity.” He squeezes my hand. “Remember that.”
“What did you say?”
He frowns. “When?”
“The whole time.”
His one-handed hold on the wheel tightens and his jaw clenches briefly. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Bullshit, Oliver!” I snap. “Whatever you said to them, it saved my life. I was so damn scared in there. My clothes are ruined, and I’m definitely going to be plagued by nightmares about tonight. So screw your ‘it doesn’t matter’ crap.” I pause for a moment, to breathe and to let it sink in. “I deserve to know.”
He doesn’t react immediately. Finally, he sighs. “Initially, I simply said to leave you alone. Ostaviti na miru.” He glances at me, eyes darting back to the road. “Then it took more…” He tightens his hold on the wheel and clears his throat. I wonder what he’s hiding from me. “More than that.”
“I’m starting to feel like you’re not going to tell me the rest.”
“No, I will. I really will.” he replies, taking the moment to look at me. “Before I do, I just want you to know that I only said what I had to. Lying to them was the best way to save you.”
“You have a tendency to lie a fair bit, Oliver. I’m not fazed by that.”
He chuckles. “Damn you.”
“So… what was this lie that you seem so ashamed of telling me?”
He shifts his position on the seat and I wonder if he’s stalling just to make me give up on hearing about it. We slow down and come to a stop at a set of lights – where he surprises me by speaking.
“The first time the leader and I talked after you came in, he asked me why you were so important to me – why I cared so much about his men touching you like that,” he says. I see his jaw’s held tight in the moment he’s not speaking. “I told him that you’re mine…” He looks at me. “Mine.”
It slowly clicks in my mind what he means by ‘mine’. Girlfriend.
“Huh,” I mutter.
“I… it just came out. It was the first thing that sprung to mind. There was no time to think – I had to get you out as fast as I could.”
“Hey,” I reply, squeezing his hand. “It’s okay. I trust you.”
He turns his attention back to the road just as the lights are turning. He stays silent until we’re moving again.
“And then…” He sighs. “The creep had his hand under your shirt and…” He bites back tears. “I snapped. I just…” He sighs again. “I… I couldn’t help it. You… you were upset, and I couldn’t bear to see him touching you like that.” He inhales a long, shaky breath. “I told him I’d find his family and murder them all if he didn’t stop.”
If we weren’t in the car, I’d hug him right now. Instead, I just squeeze his hand.
“He muttered he’d kill me in return, but at least he withdrew… until he started cutting your clothes.” He turns onto another street just a little too quickly. “The leader was furious after I killed his men, though I really don’t blame him. What was said then…” He shakes his head. “I won’t explain. It was… not really something you should hear. A lot of threats and… other things.”
He looks at me. “You needed me and that was all I could focus on. I just wanted them to stop harming you. I killed them to protect you. I threatened their boss to keep you safe.” He looks back at the road. “He wanted to keep talking about it, but I could see you in tears and…” He sighs. “I wanted to hold you.”
My bottom lip trembles. Hearing him say that is so heart-warming – to have him confirm exactly how protective he is of me, it makes every horrible part of tonight wash away.
“Thank you.”
He turns onto another street and then glances at me, frowning. “For what?”
“For everything you did back there,” I reply. “For saying everything you said… be it good or bad.”
“Well, uh…” He clears his throat. “I gotta look after my Girl Friday.”
I can’t stop myself from letting out a chuckle, looking into my lap. “You haven’t called me that for a long time.” I look up at him. “Not since—” I cut myself off, remembering the last time he did – we were on a mission and after defending people at a charity event, he was bleeding out. I nearly lost him then. It’s the most horrible night of my life.
He squeezes my hand tightly, knowing what’s running through my head.
“I haven’t since then because… I’ve been trying to forget most of that night.” He looks at me. “Things have changed since then. You’re more than my Girl Friday.”
I smile. “If I’m not just your Girl Friday… why bring it up now?”
He pulls over and then looks at me. “Because you are so happy whenever I do,” he says. “Tonight’s been hell… okay, worse than hell. I just wanted you to have something from tonight to smile about – something worth remembering.”
I sniffle, and then smile. “You’re my knight in shining armor.”
He smiles. “I’ll always keep you safe.”
I wrap my other hand around his, encasing his within mine. “I’m sorry,” I say. “For being so stubborn about coming. You warned me that they were too dangerous for me to handle, yet I insisted on coming. You had to kill them when it could’ve been a ‘no violence’ meeting.”
“When it comes to the Bosnian Mafia, most meetings are violent,” he replies, an eyebrow raised.
“Yes, but all we needed was information. I really wasn’t required, and I had no idea what the hell was being said Frankly, I just got you into a difficult situation that you had to get us both out of. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be,” he replies in his soothing tone he uses whenever I’m upset.
“It was a mistake.”
“What was?”
“Me. Being here.” I unbuckle my seatbelt. “I shouldn’t have come.” I open my door.
“Felicity!”
I get out and slam the door. In tears, I quickly walk down the sidewalk, catching him out of the corner of my eye as he scrambles out to follow me.
“Felicity!” he calls.
I keep walking, ignoring him. Then I feel his hand on my arm. I twist my arm, trying to shrug him off, but it’s no use.
“Felicity! Please stop!”
“Just… let me go.” I hear him huff, and I know he’s rolling his eyes. And then he steps in front of me, making me stop so fast I nearly topple forward.
I sigh and glare at him. “What?”
“Oh, so it’s perfectly fine for you to get upset, blurt out that you think it was a mistake that you came tonight, and then expect me to let you walk through one of the most dangerous suburbs in Starling City on your own this late at night?” he says, so quickly it’s like hearing one of my babbles. “You don’t think I’ll try and stop you?”
“Well… you kinda already have stopped me.”
He sighs, rolling his eyes. “Let’s just get back in the car.”
“No.”
“What?” He’s shocked. “Why?”
“Because I screwed up our mission, and… and I don’t want to be around you right now.”
“Hey,” he whispers, cupping my face in his hands. “You didn’t screw up.”
“Did so,” I mumble.
“It was a complication, not a screw-up.”
I scoff. “Yeah, sure.”
“I got the information we needed.”
I widen my eyes. “What?”
“You’ve been so upset – and for very good reasons – and my main focus has been to be here for you. I haven’t had the chance to tell you that before those men brought you into the room, I got the information that we needed.”
I let out a shaky breath. “So… so really had I not got caught by them, you could’ve walked out of there much sooner than you did?”
He rubs both thumbs gently back and forth over my cheeks. “Don’t blame yourself.”
“They couldn’t have taken me if I hadn’t been there.” I push his arms to the side, not expecting him to let me do so. I turn away, and then mumble, “I screwed up.”
He steps around me so we’re facing again. “You, John and I… we’re a team. We’re equals. That means we’re all allowed to go out in the field.”
“You’re the one with more experience dealing with those dangerous situations.”
“Some day, I won’t be around to do all of that ‘Grrr’ stuff.” He even curls his fingers over, making his hands look like claws in between us. The action makes me laugh a little. “You and John need to be getting out there and fighting. Sometimes those situations can be unexpectedly complicated. Tonight—”
“Was a complete disaster.”
He cups my face again with both hands, this time making sure I keep eye contact with him. “Tonight was one of those complicated situations,” he says. “You weren’t to blame.”
I place my hands on his wrists, curling my fingers around his wrists. “I made things worse for you.”
“If anyone’s to blame, it’s those two brutes. They crossed the line,” he replies, gently rubbing my cheeks with his thumbs again. “You fought hard. I heard the whole thing. I’m proud of you.”
“You… you are?”
“Yes. The creep’s black eye proves how well you did.” He smiles. “I let you come because I knew you could handle yourself, and I knew that I’d be there to help you, if you needed me.
“My only regret tonight… is not being able to reach your side sooner. To be there before it got as far as it did.”
I inhale sharply, hold it, and then let it out slowly.
“Come here,” he whispers, pulling me into a hug.
I wrap my arms tightly around him, letting him hold me in his strong arms.
After several minutes of silence, he says, “It’s late. We’ve got to work tomorrow.”
I sniffle as I pull back, nodding. “Yeah.”
He takes me to the passenger side, opening the door for me. I smile in thanks before getting in. He shuts the door and then goes around to his side. He settles in his seat, reaching over and taking hold of my hand once more as he drives off.
“Uh… look…” he says. “Since it’s so late, and my place is closer… uh… why don’t you stay in one of my spare bedrooms tonight. I’ll take you back to your place in the morning.”
I raise my eyebrow. “A part of me is glad you said ‘spare bedroom’.”
He looks at me, one eyebrow raised but smiling. No, smirking. “You and your innuendos.”
I roll my eyes. “Oh, please.”
“What?” he says, trying to hide his laughter. “Come on, I luuuuuuuvvvvvvvve that about you.”
I sit there in stunned silence. He’s never said that before.
He clears his throat. “So… you want to stay at mine tonight?”
“Separate bedrooms, yes.”
“Like I’d try anything with you tonight anyway,” he mutters.
I snort. “Uh-huh. You keep telling yourself that.”
We both laugh.
****
I splash water over my face, letting its coolness wipe away all the terrifying events that I’ve seen and experienced over the last twenty-four hours. I turn off the tap and look up, staring at my reflection in the mirror. I don’t even recognize myself anymore.
I grab a hand towel and dry my face. It feels weird being in Oliver’s ensuite. Sure, I’ve been in his ensuite before – just not this one. I mean, the only ensuite of his I’ve been in is the one in Verdant. Come to think of it, it’s weird being in Oliver’s apartment. He decided several months ago that he needed his own space – especially being the Green Arrow. Thea was grilling him too much for his liking. Not that moving out seemed to help stop that – it only made her more determined to grill him every time she saw him. She’s even grilling me for information about him.
Oliver had told me I could be in here, to have a shower, but I’m too numb to do it. I’d simply stripped off my clothes – the closest I’ll get right now to forgetting tonight’s events – and cleaned what I could of myself in the basin.
I sigh as I put the hand towel down. I turn to my clothes lying in a pile on the floor, instinctively needing to wear more than my underwear. I pick my shirt up, holding it out in front of me with both hands, and stare at the rips all over it.
“That was one of my favorites,” I mutter.
I pick up my jeans, examining the tears in them. I sigh – was it really necessary to do that? Then I remember what Oliver said after offering me his ensuite – “Feel free to borrow whatever clothes from my wardrobe you want.”
I toss the shirt into the bin – there’s no saving it – and hold onto the jeans. They’re ripped, but I’m sure I can salvage them. I walk into his bedroom, in disbelief that I’m in his bedroom in nothing but my underwear. I stop half-way to his walk-in closet, and stare at the closed door leading out to the main room. He’s out there, and I wonder what he could be doing right now. For a moment I picture him walking in, kissing me passionately, and then carrying me over to the bed. The pleasurable moan I let out snaps me back to reality.
“Don’t be silly, Felicity. He doesn’t see you in that way.”
I continue towards the walk-in closet, but find myself diverting to the door between Oliver and myself. I turn the knob, opening the door slowly to not draw his attention – though I’m sure his freakishly good hearing caught it anyway. I hold it open just far enough to peer out. He’s sitting on his couch, with his back to me, watching the news on TV.
I softly close the door, satisfied that I’ve seen him. I walk across to his walk-in closet – and that’s when it hits me: how completely oblivious I’ve been about his feelings for me. In the four years we’ve known each other, I’ve always assumed he could never love me the way I love him – that he saw me as nothing more than his friend, his ‘Girl Friday’, his go-to woman, the brains behind the Green Arrow missions. Nothing more than a brother looking out for his sister.
It’s been more than that. Okay, it’s taken him longer than the point three seconds it took me to develop a crush after meeting him. But… it’s there. Right?
He killed the Count almost two years ago because the latter was about to inject me with Vertigo. The way he touched my cheek, the way he dismissed his own injury because he was so concerned for me. How did I not notice he was falling for me?
The way he was in the car outside the Mafia tonight – before things went downhill – the way he was so worried for my safety. The way he gently put his hand on my cheek!
No, the way he’s acted with me throughout tonight.
I place my hand on my forehead, letting out a small groan – I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to see this! I always thought the way he acted around me was simply him being friendly. I can’t believe it! He’s fallen for me, the way I’ve fallen for him!
I step into his walk-in closet, and drift my eyes over all his clothes. All of my clothes could fit in here twice and it’d still have spare space. Seriously, who needs one this big? I feel as if it’s too weird wearing any of his clothes. Not that I’m against it – I’m just… it’s just uncomfortable. Even if I’m only going to be seen by him. But the more I think about it, think about Oliver in general, I find myself concluding that maybe I’m just being ridiculous. He wouldn’t tell me to do it if he wasn’t comfortable with it.
I jump as the doorbell echoes through the apartment. Who’s arriving at this time of the night? I turn my attention back to his clothes, to my search for something to wear. That’s when I spot it. Hanging at the end of a row, tucked away in the corner, easy to miss. I smile in disbelief that I’d forgotten about it. Oliver’s emerald green jumper. I’ve worn it once before – when Oliver was in the hospital after what happened at that charity event. At the time, Oliver had given me his spare key so I could come here to get things for him, or if I needed somewhere to crash for a night, since his place is much closer to the heart of the city than mine. Something drew me here. I can’t explain it, but I needed to be here to feel close to him. It was late at night when I came, well after the hospital’s visiting hours ended and I couldn’t actually be with him. I’d come to his bedroom, seeking his bed. All of this now sounds crazy, I know, but I just felt comfort. I haven’t told him I came that night and I don’t know if I will. I curled up in his bed and slept. When I woke in the morning, that’s when I saw the jumper. It was lying on the end of the bed, bunched up like he’d taken it off and had dumped it there. I picked it up and instinctively smelt it. Creepy, I know. But it smelt of him. What did I do? I wore it. Not just while I was in his apartment. No, I wore it outside.
I drop my jeans on the floor. I gently take the jumper off the hanger, and pull it on. It’s soft, well-worn, and comfortable. I check myself in the mirror – his jumper’s so long, it’s almost halfway down my thighs. It’s like an over-sized long-sleeved dress. Then again, I’m rather petite compared to Oliver. Petite and quite a fair bit shorter than him.
As I stare at myself in the mirror, I decide that this is all I’m going to wear. Just this emerald green jumper. It’s a bold move, but hey, why not? It might just help me find a way to open up to Oliver – to tell him how I feel. It’s not until my hand is on the bedroom door that I remember hearing the doorbell. What if he has a visitor?
I open the door enough for me to peep out. He’s not on the couch anymore. I wait, listening for any voices, but all I hear is the TV. I open the door wider and step out. I pause, listening, while ready to duck back into his bedroom. We’re alone – so it’s time to bite the bullet and do this. I close the bedroom door, before taking tentative steps towards the lounge. A minute ago I was confident about coming out here like this. Now that it’s come down to it, I’m not so sure.
I stop in the archway into the lounge – and that’s when our eyes meet. He’s walking away from the front door headed for the couch, holding take-away Chinese food. That explains the doorbell! I watch as his eyes drift down, noticing what I have on, and his mouth drops open slightly. It snaps shut and he swallows. He is in love with me.
He dumps the food on the coffee table and then comes around to me. I can’t believe I haven’t noticed it before – the love in his eyes every time he looks at me. I smile and he smiles back.
“I got us some food.”
I step closer, getting so close our faces are inches apart. “Uh-huh,” I airily reply.
There’s a moment where we both just look into each others’ eyes. He then cups my head, leans in, and kisses me. I kiss him back, finally setting my emotions free – opening my mouth to deepen it, our tongues rolling over each other. I grab his shirt with both hands, curling my fingers until I have them in tight fists. It’s such an incredible feeling finally kissing him.
He breaks our kiss, and I stop myself from chasing him. I know he wouldn’t stop unless it was necessary. He looks into my eyes, and for the first time I love the bright blue of his eyes.
“I love you,” he whispers. “I have since I met you.”
My bottom lip trembles as my eyes fill with tears. I can’t believe he’s finally confessing it! “I love you, too, Oliver.”
He smiles, before reclaiming my lips in another kiss. As our kisses turn into rough, passionate kisses, I take a step back, pulling him with me. The next thing I know my back hits the bedroom door. Damn! Forgot that I closed it. Oliver drops his left hand from my head, and seconds later the door’s opening. I let go of his shirt, slide my hands up his chest, and wrap my arms around his neck.
I start to step back, but he pulls me back to him. He easily lifts me up – an advantage of his strength – and I instinctively wrap my legs around him. We continue to kiss. I run a hand up into his hair as he walks over to his bed. He kneels on the bed and lowers me until I’m lying on my back with him on top.
He pulls back, supporting his weight above me with his right hand on the bed just next to my left shoulder. God, I love it when he unintentionally shows off his strength.
“For the record,” he says, “that suits you better than it does me.”
I smile, and pull his head back down to me, kissing him again.
I don’t know why I waited so long to do this.
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Well, that’s it. Please comment.
You can find me on Twitter — @LandJrule — or Tumblr (arrow-olicitylover)
Arrow Olicity Lover 